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PeerBasis
Compensation Comparability Determination

Community Youth Orchestra Of Bucks Count

Executive Director / CEO

EIN 232657944
PA · NTEE A69
FY ending 2023-06-30
June 9, 2026

This analysis benchmarks the total compensation of Erica Cherry, Executive Director / CEO ($50,500) against every comparable organization that fit the selection criteria — 79 in total — drawn systematically from IRS Form 990 filings, not a hand-picked subset.

Compensation sits at approximately the 68th percentile of comparable organizationswithin the typical range

Benchmarked executive: Erica Cherry — reported title “Executive Dir.”, a direct title match to the Executive Director / CEO role.

How comparable organizations were selected

79 organizations qualified on sector, size, and geography 79 within the band form the benchmarked peer set.

Distribution of comparable compensation

$571 total compensation of comparable organizations → $109,255 $50,500
$8,75110th
$23,53825th
$40,159Median
$57,49575th
$77,21390th
$50,500This org · 68th
p10$8,751
p25$23,538
p50$40,159
p75$57,495
p90$77,213
$50,500

Comparable organizations

Each figure is Form 990 Part VII columns D + F (reportable pay plus other compensation and benefits; column F may include amounts from related organizations), normalized to PA cost of living (BEA RPP, 2023) and to its filing year (CPI-U); the reported amount is on each linked 990.

OrganizationStateRevenueMatched titleComp
(reported)
Comp
(adjusted)
FY
Anderson Symphony Orchestra Assoc IN$283,201 Executive Director $54,124 $57,235 2023
Baltimore Chamber Orchestra Inc MD$286,726 Executive Dir. $42,481 $39,826 2023
Bluewater Chamber Orchestra OH$288,511 Artistic Director $29,000 $29,917 2024
Pioneer Valley Symphony Inc MA$275,255 Executive Director $38,750 $34,918 2023
Minot Symphony Association Inc ND$271,643 Executive Director $55,200 $59,002 2024
Corvallis Youth Symphony Assoc OR$299,505 Executive Director $57,440 $53,490 2023
Vivo Youth Orchestras CA$300,586 President/executive Director $88,200 $76,372 2023
Lyra MN$267,342 Players Representative $2,000 $1,925 2024
Catskill Symphony Orchestra NY$266,367 Executive Dir. $35,000 $30,805 2024
Pueblo Symphony Association Inc CO$303,796 Orch. Rep. $7,398 $7,113 2023
Jacksonville Symphony Society IL$263,856 Executive Director $6,070 $5,813 2024
Ashland Symphony Orchestra OH$262,008 Executive Di $44,582 $45,992 2024
North Charleston Pops SC$260,852 Executive Dir. $16,667 $17,436 2023
Southeastern Minnesota Youth MN$310,682 Executive Di $44,637 $41,853 2025
Kennett Symphony Of Chester County PA$254,669 Music Direct $29,154 $29,154 2023
Lake Washington Symphony Orche WA$253,894 President $5,000 $4,361 2024
Bemidji Symphony Orchestra MN$249,976 Executive Di $43,728 $41,001 2025
Oregon East Symphony OR$248,785 President $900 $814 2024
Douglas County Youth Orchestra Inc CO$246,704 Director $44,136 $40,159 2025
Black Hills Symphony Orchestra Society SD$246,108 Executive Director $33,099 $34,663 2025
Arapahoe Philharmonic Inc CO$245,061 Executive Di $73,163 $70,349 2023
Chamber Music Oc CA$243,060 Executive Dir. $10,580 $9,161 2023
The Capitol Symphonic Youth Orchestras Inc VA$327,611 Executive Director $50,400 $47,398 2024
Orchestra Santa Monica Association CA$329,123 Music Director $21,500 $17,617 2025
Macon Pops Inc GA$239,728 Ceo $48,500 $48,901 2023

Comp (reported) is the figure on each organization's Form 990 (columns D + F); Comp (adjusted) normalizes it to PA cost of living and 2023 dollars. Click any organization to verify the figure on ProPublica.

Methodology

Comparable organizations were drawn from electronically filed IRS Form 990 returns and matched on sector (NTEE code), budget (a size-adaptive revenue band that tightens as the organization grows), and geography (same-state first, broadening only when too few peers qualify); every organization within the band forms the peer set. To compare fairly across regions and years, peer compensation is normalized to PA cost of living (BEA Regional Price Parities, 2023) and to the subject's filing year (CPI-U). The figure benchmarked is Form 990 Part VII, Section A, columns D + F — reportable pay plus other compensation, benefits, and deferred amounts (column F may include amounts from related organizations) — with the chief executive matched by role. Related-organization amounts (column E) and institutional trustees are excluded. Full methodology: peerbasis.org/methodology.

Sample, role match & sensitivity

Sensitivity — the subject's percentile under alternative compensation definitions:

BasisSubject percentile
Total compensation (D + F), cost-of-living + inflation adjusted — the PeerBasis default68th
Total compensation (D + F), as reported (no adjustments)63rd
Reportable pay only (column D), adjusted68th
All sources (D + E + F), adjusted67th

If the percentile moves materially across these definitions, the result is sensitive to methodology choices, and the board should weigh which basis best fits its facts.

Rebuttable presumption of reasonableness · 26 CFR 53.4958-6

Compensation paid by a tax-exempt organization is presumed reasonable — shifting the burden to the IRS — when three requirements are met. This report supplies the comparability data for the second. The board should record the following in its minutes concurrently with its decision:

Draft board minutes — executive compensation

  1. The compensation of the Executive Director / CEO (Erica Cherry) was approved in advance by [the Board / Compensation Committee], composed of members with no conflict of interest with respect to the arrangement.
  2. Prior to its determination, the authorized body obtained and relied upon appropriate comparability data, namely the PeerBasis Compensation Comparability Determination dated June 9, 2026, comparing compensation against 79 similarly situated organizations (Same NTEE sector (A69), nationwide + budget 0.67–1.5× revenue).
  3. The authorized body determined that total compensation of $50,500 is reasonable (approximately the 68th percentile of comparable organizations) and documented the basis for this determination concurrently, on [date], by a vote of [__ for / __ against].

Sources: IRS Form 990 e-file data (apps.irs.gov); IRS Business Master File (NTEE classification). Every figure traces to an original public filing — click any organization above to verify it on ProPublica. PeerBasis is a service of Prismind Analytics; its methodology is published, was commissioned for independent adversarial review, and discloses its own limitations. This report is comparability data to support a board's good-faith determination under IRC 4958; it is not legal or tax advice. Generated by PeerBasis on June 9, 2026.